This spring, the Committee on Global Thought held a series of timely and thought-provoking events that included speakers, panel discussions, and faculty convenings, covering topics from global economics to youth advocacy to relationships between states and universities internationally. Coming to the close of another academic year, we’re excited to reflect on all that we’ve accomplished together–and to begin looking forward to next fall.
In February, CGT had the pleasure of bringing students and alumni together for our “Careers Without Borders” panel series. Current MA in Global Thought students heard from speakers who have taken their knowledge and expertise to industries across the world, from nonprofit to private sector careers. We look forward to continuing our partnerships with alumni, connecting current students with CGT professionals in the field as we tackle the new challenges ahead.
In March, CGT hosted the first “Shifting Paradigms” webinar, part of a series of events convened in collaboration with Columbia Global Centers. This conversation, “Emerging Powers and the New Multipolarity,” addressed the transition of world politics from a unipolar to a multipolar order, the key markers of this change in international relations, and how the rise of alternative power centers is influencing the global economic system. CGT Chair Adam Tooze moderated a panel that featured Ahmed Aboudouh, Rami G. Khouri, and Soli Özel. Later in the month, a discussion titled “Crisis in the Eurozone” put Chair Adam Tooze in conversation with CGT member Katharina Pistor to explore the challenges facing the Euro area and the prospects for its future development amid global economic turmoil.
In early April, CGT partnered with the Columbia Global Center in Nairobi to host “Youth Advocacy in Kenya” as a part of the launch of CGT’s signature research project, “Youth in a Changing World.” The event invited human rights advocates from the region to talk about what is at stake and what is possible for young people in the region following historic protests last year. Later that same day, Professors Darléne Dubuisson and Amelia Herbert led a book talk to discuss Dubuisson’s recently published Reclaiming Haiti’s Futures: Returned Intellectuals, Placemaking, and Radical Imagination. Also in April, CGT member Manan Ahmed, in discussion with former CGT chair Carol Gluck, held a lunchtime seminar on Ahmed’s newest book, Disrupted City: Walking the Pathways of Memory and History in Lahore. The book joins Sufi study circles, architects doing restoration in the medieval parts of Lahore, and a broad range of storytellers and historians.
Reclaiming Haiti’s Futures: A Book Talk with Darlène Dubuisson and Amelia Herbert
Also in early April, the Undergraduate Committee on Global Thought (UCGT) held its fourth annual symposium: “Reconstructing Worlds: Emerging Perspectives in Global Problem Solving.” After a semester of research into the conditions that make meaningful conversations possible as well as the global and local issues facing undergraduates, the UCGT developed a novel method for facilitating open dialogue and organized a conversation circle for student and faculty participants.
The second half of the month featured a fascinating panel discussion on the likelihood of Irish reunification by 2030. Chair Adam Tooze and CGT member Stephanie McCurry led a conversation with Brendan O’Leary and Niall ó Dochartaigh to explore how a referendum would work, what preparations are underway in the governments of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Great Britain, and the remaining challenges and lessons of other reunification processes. A panel titled “The Chimerica Campus” explored the history of Sino-US education exchange and the role that policy and institutions have played in deepening these ties, asking whether it’s possible to be a truly global campus in the current moment. Chair Adam Tooze moderated the conversation between Professor Xiaobo Lü, CGT Executive Director Lisa Weir, and CGT MA alum Kennedy Zhang.
Irish Reunification by 2030? Panel featuring Adam Tooze, Stephanie McCurry, Brendan O’Leary, and Niall ó Dochartaigh
At the end of the month, CGT and SIPA’s Institute for Global Politics convened a panel discussion with CGT’s Adam Tooze, Katharina Pistor, and SIPA’s Alan Taylor and Jeffry Frieden on the American dollar’s prevalence in the global economy. “The Future of the Dollar System,” asked whether the dollar system can last, and whether alternatives are imaginable. The last event of April came to fruition in collaboration with Northwestern University’s Buffett Institute for Global Affairs. “The Government Against the University: Reports from Colombia, Hungary, Poland, and Turkey” was an online panel discussion featuring university leaders and faculty members from around the world who have confronted—and in some cases fended off—state attacks.
In May, Chair Adam Tooze moderated “Navigating US-China Flux,” a panel of leading voices across the region exploring the the strategic opportunities and geopolitical challenges arising from the United States‘ renewed focus on the Indo-Pacific. This was in collaboration with Columbia Global Center Beijing, and a part of their thematic series “Navigating Globalization: The Path to Advanced Thinking.” On Friday, May 9th, the End-of-Year Symposium for Global Thought Masters students was a huge success; students spent the day presenting original research that covered topics as broad-reaching as identity formation at the crossroads of memory and culture, the political terrain of sustainability, and equitable systems after colonialism, among many more. At the beginning of the month, Global Thought MA student Kimberley Snijders won first place in the annual GSAS Master’s SynThesis competition, an opportunity for MA students from across the Arts and Sciences to showcase their research. Kimberley’s presentation was titled, “Entrepreneurship as Freedom? Interrogating the Role of Entrepreneurship as a Tool to Advance Gender Equality in International Development.”
As the semester drew to a close, we hosted a graduate reception to celebrate this year’s cohort of incredible students, who we are certain will go out into the world to accomplish great things. We appreciate everyone’s attendance and participation in CGT events through the spring semester, and we’re eager to share our lineup of next fall semester’s events before long. In the meantime, we hope everyone has a wonderful summer!
Columbia Global Thought MA Class of 2025